Ghost of the Uchiha
by Xaiban
Summary: Madara didn't trust Obito. After he left, Madara decided to find another apprentice to ensure his plans success, should Obito fail.


**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of the characters included in this story.**

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Uchiha Madara was currently seated on a throne of what appears to be a hollowed tree trunk. Obito had just left the cave believing that Madara had died. Madara had been very doubtful of Obito since he was told that Kakashi was still alive. He believes that Obito could still be swayed into returning to Konoha should his friends discover his identity. It was with this thought in mind that he re-attached himself to the Gedō Mazō. He then told a Zetsu clone to send a telepathic message to Zetsu having him return to Madara when he could do so without raising Obito's suspicion.

A few hours after Madara had sent the message, Zetsu rose from the ground in front of Madara's throne. "Madara, I thought you had chosen to die today?" Zetsu ask.

"I had decided that I would die once Obito had finished his training and was ready to leave. However, I feel that Obito may not follow the plan through to completion. He still has feelings for his friends in the village. Should they find out the truth they may be able to convince him to go home. I cannot leave this up to chance. I must have an apprentice that I know, without a doubt, will revive me when the time is right." Madara replied.

"I see." Zetsu took a moment think. "So I suppose you want me to find you another disciple?"

"No I want you to stay with Obito and do as he says at least until he deviates from my plan. I will have another clone searching for a suitable candidate." Madara explained. "I only wanted to let you know that you should keep an eye on him and let me know when he does something to endanger the plan. Go, detaching my body from the Gedō Mazō took more out of me than I thought it would and I need to rest. Until I have a new apprentice I do not want to be disturbed."

After receiving his orders Zetsu returned to Obito, leaving Madara to rest and prepare for his new disciple. Madara hoped it wouldn't take as long as it did to find Obito. Years past and still his Zetsu clones had not found anyone that would fill his needs. They had to have the determination to see their plans through, no matter the obstacle in their way.

Then one day, the Zetsu clone watching Konoha, brought news of the Uchiha Massacre. Even though he hated his clan for their betrayal he felt his anger build as his prediction, that the Senju Clan would destroy the Uchiha Clan, came true. "If only the fools would have listened to me this would never have happened. Go to the village and retrieve as many Sharingan as you can. Keep them separated and paired together. They are more powerful as a pair." Madara instructed.

When the clone returned later that day he told Madara that he was only able to collect two pairs of Sharingan. Someone else had already been collecting them so he grabbed the only two remaining untouched bodies and left. As angry as Madara was, at hearing someone was stealing his clans eyes, he was at least happy that he now had two pair of useable Sharingan. One pair he implanted into himself and the other he kept to give to his new apprentice.

Now he was back to waiting for a clone to find an acceptable candidate. So far he hadn't heard from the original Zetsu so he assumed that Obito was still acting according to plan. Thankfully Madara only had to wait a few more years before he finally got his new apprentice. Zetsu said he had finally found a potentially viable candidate. The only problems were that he was a Jinchūriki and was fiercely loyal to Konoha. However, the boy had the exact qualities Madara was looking for. Now he just had to find a way to make him see things from his point of view.

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Uzumaki Naruto was currently lying on his back with a fist sized hole through the right side of his chest. It all went so fast he barely had time to tell what happened. First Sasuke tried to kill him; Naruto had just enough time to move a little to his left so that the Chidori missed his heart. The next thing he knew Sasuke threw him onto the bank and ran off to meet Orochimaru.

Just as Sasuke entered the forest two pale white arms grabbed Naruto and pulled him underground. Naruto felt as if he was falling very slowly, then all of a sudden he thrust out of the ground into some sort of cave. Naruto was then placed on a bed and some old guy was walking toward him. Just as Naruto was about to ask what was going on the man looks into Naruto's eyes. Madara had put the boy under a genjutsu that would keep him unconscious until he was released from it by the user.

If Naruto were to just disappear someone would be looking for him. That's where Zetsu clones come in, with the ability to transform into anyone they have touched; one of them would be able to take the boy's place. The clones could even match the chakra signature of the one they're impersonating. After the boy was dead and he had control of the Kyuubi, he would seal it into a clone that had copied Naruto and send him to take his place.

Madara decided the clone that had been watching Konoha would be the best one for the job. He's been watching Konoha for more than a decade. No one knew Naruto better than him. After giving the clone his orders Madara moved back to the seal.

Madara needed the boy to die so that he could remove the Kyuubi without destroying the boy's chakra coils. If he was dead his chakra flow would stop allowing him to 'safely' remove the beast. The simplest way Madara knew to do that was the Five Element Seal. This seal, when placed on top of the Eight Trigrams Seal, would stop the flow of chakra from the Kyuubi. This would stop the Kyuubi's chakra from healing him, quickly leading to the boy's death.

Once the boy finally stopped breathing red chakra started pouring out of Naruto's stomach. With the host dead the seal no longer had its chakra anchor and quickly faded. Once the Kyuubi had taken its form Madara caught the Kyuubi's eye and cast the genjutsu. Its eyes dilated and the Sharingan appeared in the Kyuubi's own eyes.

Madara healed the boy using the cells he had cultivated from the Gedō Mazō and Hashirama's DNA. The boy was now lying, unconscious but alive, on the bed. All that was left of this part of the plan was to give him the Sharingan the clone had recovered from the Uchiha massacre. Once he was also done with that, he only had to wait for the boy to wake up.

With his work with Naruto done he then prepared to seal the Kyuubi into the clone. The clone was lying on his back on top of a sealing altar. Madara was standing over the altar checking to make sure the clone had made the seal correctly. Once he was satisfied, that it would not only work but be nearly identical to Naruto's seal, he performed the Eight Trigrams Sealing Technique and the Kyuubi was sucked into the seal. When the sealing was done the clone left to take Naruto's place at the Valley of the End. As the clone melded with the boulder blocking the entrance to the cave Naruto started to wake up.

"Where am I?" Naruto ask. He knew he wasn't alone he could hear someone breathing.

"You are between this world and the other, young Uzumaki." Madara replied cryptically.

"Am I dead?" Naruto ask trying to sit up, he felt a lot of pain from his chest.

"You feel pain because you're still alive. However it is a miracle that you're alive. I don't know how that wound didn't kill you." Madara spoke slowly making sure that Naruto heard every word he said. "Though I did treat you, you were almost too far gone to save." Naruto's eyes widened hearing he almost died.

"Thanks." Naruto a little confused, he didn't remember much after he and Sasuke started fighting.

"It's still early to thank me, because one day you'll have to repay this debt." Madara spoke with a serious yet even tone. "Your motto is 'I never give up, and I never go back on my word' right?"

"Well yeah. What do I need to do?" Madara just stared at him with a rather intense look. "You're not some old pervert who's into little boys' right?"

"Not really." Naruto expected to be yelled at for calling him a pervert like Iruka does. So he was rather surprised at the lack of response from the old man.

"Sorry, but I can't stay here too long. I have to get back to the village." As Naruto said this it reminded him of Sasuke and what happened earlier. "I have to save Sasuke. I'm the only one who can convince him to come home."

"Protecting your friends, you more like him than I would have liked." At this Naruto looked confused. "I'm afraid you cannot go back to Konoha Naruto."

"What! What do you mean I can't go back?" Naruto was frantic if he could have gotten up he would have been running for an exit.

"You see while you were unconscious I made a clone of you to take your place in Konoha." This shocked Naruto he had never heard of anyone actually cloning people. "It was necessary to save your life. I was trying to heal you but the Kyuubi's chakra was getting in the way. The only way I could save you was to seal it into your clone. You are no longer a Jinchūriki."

"So, why can't I go home? You can just have the clone leave and I'll take my place again." Naruto thought this was a simple fix and he could be home in a few days.

"You don't understand he is exactly like you. He believes he is you. If you show up in Konoha talking about how you're the real Naruto they wouldn't believe you." This is where Madara was worried about making the boy mad at him. He needed the boy to look up to him. To see him as the father or grandfather he never had.

"Why wouldn't they believe me?" Naruto was starting to get desperate for some way to get home, to see his friends.

"Do you know what the Sharingan is?" When Naruto nodded he continued. "I have transplanted the eyes of an Uchiha into you just like your sensei, which gives you the Sharingan as well. Now your eyes are black like mine. Do you think they will believe that you are Naruto when your eyes are the wrong color?"

Naruto didn't want to believe it but that explained the pain he felt from his eyes. Now he understood why he couldn't go back. If Sasuke came home with different color eyes no one would believe he was an Uchiha. They would believe him to be an imposter and he would either be kicked out of the village or sent to interrogation. He had no interest in seeing that crazy snake lady again. Realizing that he couldn't go home he just hung his head.

"Can I really never go back? How am I supposed to bring Sasuke back if I can't go to the village myself?" Naruto had never been so depressed.

"You can't. However you don't need to worry, remember there is a clone of you in Konoha that will take care of Sasuke and your friends for you." This is the most important part of the plan, having the boy change his dream from becoming Hokage to helping Madara. He had already decided not to tell Naruto about the 'Moons Eye Plan.' Other than that he would teach him everything that he knew jutsu, taijutsu, sharingan genjutsu, even the Rikudō jutsu.

"Look at reality. This world is full of things that don't go as you wish. The longer you live the more you realize that reality is just made of pain, suffering and emptiness." Madara needed to watch what he said from here on he was getting close to talking about the 'Moons Eye Plan.'

"What the hell are you going on about!? I don't want to stay here forever. Just… ugh" Naruto coughed up a little blood.

"If you want to leave, go ahead." Madara was acting like he didn't care. "If you can do so without dying, of course." Madara turned and walked to his throne that looked like a hollowed out tree.

"Who are you?" Madara just sat on his throne and thought for a minute.

"I am a ghost of the Uchiha." Madara always seemed to have flare for the dramatic. "I am Uchiha Madara." Naruto just looked at him like that was supposed to mean something. "You don't know who that is, do you?" Naruto just shook his head. "I was the leader of the Uchiha Clan at the same time Hashirama was the leader of the Senju Clan. You do know who Senju Hashirama is right?" Once again Naruto just nodded. "Of course you do." Madara mumbled.

"Hashirama and I were friends; we created Konoha together so that our clans could stop fighting each other. However I could see that the Uchiha were less favored. While the Senju Clan was praised for their strength, the Uchiha Clan was feared. This fear made people distrust my clan. I was the only one who could see it. The Senju were slowly turning the people against us. It would be only a short time before they would subjugate the entire clan. " Madara stopped to make sure the boy was following along. "Do you remember anything about the Uchiha clan, from before the massacre?"

"They were mean. They used to pick on me a lot. Every time I pulled a prank they would take me to the Hokage, not before throwing a couple insults at me first though." Naruto put on a pouty face while telling his tale.

"Yes, they were rather arrogant. Before the massacre there were very few active Uchiha in the shinobi corp. Instead most Uchiha became a part of what was known as the Uchiha Police Force. The Nidaime Hokage created it telling them it was a way to bring honor to their clan while protecting the people of the village." Madara made sure he was keeping up before moving on. This was important to get the boy to sympathize with him.

"However this had the opposite effect. Every time a civilian did something wrong it was the Uchiha who arrested them. This made the people dislike the clan even more, which was exactly what the Hokage of the time wanted. Do you understand; the Uchiha clan had been tamed and then ostracized." He could tell the boy was having some trouble understanding some of the words but he seemed to get the message.

"You mean the Hokage wanted the Uchiha clan to be hated? Why would they want that?" Naruto ask obviously confused.

"The Senju Clan and the Uchiha Clan have always been rivals. That is why I left the village. I could not bear to watch my beloved clan be put through that. When Hashirama hunted me down, at what is now known as the Valley of The End, I knew he was there to stop me from convincing the Uchiha to leave. We fought and I lost. He thought he had killed me but I managed to survive and escape. I found the Gedō Mazō and was able to connect with it to prolong my life that is why I have lived so long. I just wanted what was best for my clan and I was nearly killed because of it. The Hokage's, even the current Hokage Sarutobi Hiruzen, made sure the clan was put in its place." As predicted Naruto interrupted to defend his 'Jiji.'

"Hey, Jiji would never do something like that! He's nice and fair to everyone." Madara saw the fire in his eyes and he almost hated that he had to crush that flame.

"Really, how about when the villagers don't treat you right? How about when they kicked you out of their stores or threw things at you? Do you really think the Hokage, a man who can give permission for a shinobi to kill someone, couldn't make them to stop?" Madara could see the doubt in the boy's eyes. Now he just had to make him truly believe it.

Naruto couldn't believe what he was hearing. What was worse was that it all made sense. The Hokage had more than enough power to make people leave him alone when they picked on him. That was one of the reasons he wanted to be Hokage was so that everyone would respect him. Now hearing that the man he thought of as a grandfather might not really care about him, it was hard to believe.

"But why would he do that too me?" Naruto was hurt and confused. He needed answers.

"Because of what you were, just like the villagers, he thought you should be punished because of the Kyuubi. His wife was killed during the Kyuubi attack. I would think he blames you for it." Naruto was crying now. He thought if his 'Jiji' could pretend to like him than anyone could. He could see the anger and pain in the boy's tear filled eyes.

"You've no need to cry Naruto. You'll never have to go through that again if you stay with me while I train you. You don't need them anymore, you have me now. You have the Sharingan, given to you by the leader of the Uchiha Clan. If you wish you may join the Uchiha." Madara could see it on his face. The offer to join the clan, to have a family it's all Naruto ever really wanted. He knew he had the boy now. He just had to make sure he didn't lose him.

"Really?" That's all Naruto could say. The boy looked so desperate to have anyone care about him he almost felt bad for manipulating him. Almost, this boy would be the one to ensure his revival. He was necessary to Madara's plans so it had to be done.

"Yes, you can't use the name Uzumaki Naruto anymore because the clone has taken that identity. So you will need a new name anyway. If you prove yourself worthy of the Uchiha name, then after your training you may choose a new name for yourself." He was close. Madara could feel the desire to prove himself rolling off the boy. Yes, this was exactly the right ninja for the job.

Naruto was determined he knew he could do it if given the chance. He was still sad about everything that heard about the Uchiha, 'Jiji', and Konoha but he now knew that no one there really cared about him. However now he had someone who had not only saved his life but was offering to let him join his family. Naruto wouldn't let him down.

"So Naruto, what is your answer? Will you stay and train with me leaving your old life behind? Or will you return to Konoha?" This was it; all Madara had done for the last twenty to twenty-five years all came down to this moment.

"Yes, I will stay with you. You've saved my life, given me the Sharingan. You've shown me what the people I thought cared about me really thought. Offered me a place in your family, to train and teach me everything I need to know to be an awesome ninja." Naruto looked up at Madara with his Sharingan active for the first time. "I won't let you down old man. That's a promise of a lifetime. I never break my promises."

Madara had succeeded, not that he thought he wouldn't. Naruto had made him nervous, there for a minute, taking so long to respond. Now Madara could see that he was trying to organize his thoughts so that he wouldn't mess up his proclamation.

"Good, I'm glad you chose to stay Naruto. In a few days you'll be healed enough to start training. Each day you'll train until you pass out from exhaustion. So enjoy your rest while you can. I have much to teach you and not much time to do so." The next few years will be hard on the boy but in the end he will be strong enough to kill Obito and if necessary Nagato as well.

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**So this is the first chapter of my first fanfiction. I know there are some stories out with this same basic beginning. I really enjoy these stories where Madara takes on a mentor role for Naruto. However most of these stories usually get to a certain point and either stop updating or do something that makes me not want to read it anymore. Mainly meaning they write either too much sex or add too many things that don't make much sense in the Narutoverse.**

**So let me know what you think of how the chapter went. I'm open to all suggestions. My skin is pretty thick so be honest just don't be hateful. I don't understand why some people are like that. Thanks for reading. I don't know when I'll update again so just follow and we'll see. Just to be clear there will be another update eventually. **

**L8R**

**-Xaiban**


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